All articles in category Malta
By Edwin Caruana
April 2001
Malta
Missionary Spotlight Malta
When Paul’s ship ran aground on Malta in A.D. 60, the island was filled with temples and statues, and prehistoric temples remain today. The Maltese people are still incurably religious; 88% of them attend church every Sunday. The most prominent building in any village is the Roman Catholic Church. At most street corners you will find statues bearing inscriptions like ‘say this prayer and you will get this amount of indulgences’. During the summer the statues are carried around at religious festivals. People compete for the privilege of carrying a statue that will leave a ‘mark’ on their shoulder. I have heard it said that...
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By Ray Lentzsch
February 2001
Malta
MISSIONARY SPOTLIGHT-A missionary in Malta
44 years ago, while teaching journalism and serving as director of the News Bureau at Whittier College in California, I was given a gospel tract entitledWhat must I do to be saved? Through reading that I came to know Jesus Christ as my own personal Lord and Saviour. Since then I have made Christ’s last command – to go into all the world and preach the gospel – my first desire. This has taken me to 214 countries of the world in the past 43 years (I am now 73 years old). But I have lived 15 years in Malta, longer than in any other...
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By Ray and Wanda Hoover
February 2001
Malta
MISSIONARY SPOTLIGHT-A shared vision
My name is Ray Hoover. I am a Baptist missionary serving in Malta. My wife and I were both saved in 1969 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. One year later we were called into the gospel ministry full time. It has been our joy to serve the Lord Jesus for thirty-one years. When we arrived in Malta in 1984 we met three Maltese Christians who wanted a Baptist church started in their country. The Lord provided a building and a small congregation to start with, and then with his blessing, we saw a viable church planted after nearly four years. It was during this time that...
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By Paul Mizzi
February 2001
Malta
Melita: the island in the Bible now without the Bible!
Like most Maltese I was brought up as a Roman Catholic. The Lord was pleased to use three Pentecostal ladies from the Republic of Ireland, on vacation in Malta, to bring me to the faith. They gave me Michael Green’s book Why Bother with Jesus? On its inside cover I found written in ink, ‘I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly’ (John 10:10). The Holy Spirit imprinted the words of this text on my heart, convicting me of my spiritual failure and need to seek refuge in the Redeemer. Thus I was left alone with a Bible in my...
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February 2001
Malta
MISSIONARY SPOTLIGHT-FACTS
Area:A small group ofislands in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Sicily, with a total area of 122 square miles. The three largest islands are inhabited – Malta, Gozo, and Comino. Environment:Malta’s terrain is rocky (limestone) and quite low-lying. It enjoys a Mediterranean climate. Just over a third of the land is arable, although soil quality is often poor. There is only a limited supply of natural fresh water, making desalination of seawater necessary. Population:About 400,000, predominantly native Maltese. Two-thirds as many again have emigrated to Australia, Britain and Canada. Life expectancy:Men 75,women 80 years. Officiallanguages: Maltese and English. Literacy:88%. Capital and main port:Valletta. Urbanisation:85%. Economy:Malta’s...
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